“I told you she was a Christmas elf,” Gizelle said in a stage-whisper to her mate, Conall. “See?”
Felicity couldn’t resist a happy little twirl. Her luggage had finally been found and forwarded to the resort, and she had packed a Christmas outfit complete with red and white striped tights and a swishy green skirt trimmed in white fake fur. Chef was indeed a jolly Santa Claus. Theodora was dressed as Mrs. Claus, because Chef’s mate, Magnolia, had declared that she wanted to enjoy the festivities without the pressure of performing.
Robert spent some time in his white hart form, a wreath of green holly around his neck, prancing around the hall with a harness of jingle bells. He was the closest thing they had to a reindeer and the few children at the resort had begged him to appear. A few of them were small enough and brave enough to ride him.
“My mate is bigger,” Gizelle said proudly, clinging to his arm.
“It’s not a competition,” Conall said gravely. He seemed to have no interest in shifting and frolicking.
Felicity gave the snack table a wide berth and nothing came up spoiled except the children, who were plied with sweets, gifts, toys, and games.
Chef gave everyone specially crafted truffles in tiny boxes.
Breck’s were spicy dark chocolate. “Because I’m hot,” he said humbly.
Darla’s were maple and cream, shaped and toasted to look like hot-cross buns.
Theodora got milk chocolate truffles with a frothy coconut filling.
Robert got white chocolate truffles with a cream center spiced delicately with peppermint. “They taste like snow,” he said.
“That isnotwhat snow tastes like,” Felicity scoffed.
She received cakey, chocolate-covered truffles with tiny bits of walnut. “Brownie truffles!” she declared in delight. “Oh, they’re tinybrownies!”
“Is that cannibalism?” Robert teased.
“I don’t care, they’re delicious!”
Gizelle’s were all different, and Conall’s were plain dark chocolate around ganache, with a tiny dust of chocolate powder.
Chef brought Felicity a giant, wrapped plate of precious ham and all the fixings. “Since you can’t join us for dinner.”
No one wanted to take any chance that Felicity might ruin Christmas dinner, though it seemed quite likely that the brownie curse had run its course when Robert had accepted her as his mate.
“A broken home sours everything,” Felicity said, as they left the party behind to walk out into the warm, dark, star-sparkled night. “And a whole home means happiness.”
“Youmean happiness,” Robert said, his hand warm in hers. “You make my home whole. I have a present for you!”
“Can I guess what it is?” Felicity asked eagerly. “Is it in your pants?”
He laughed, a rich, warm laugh from deep inside of him, and it made everything in Felicity’s chest feel full of light. “Notthat!” He added mysteriously, “I made it for you. And itwasin my pants.”
“Hmm, well, if it’s notthat,and it was in your pants, and you made it, I’m not sure I want it.”
He laughed even harder. “It’s nothing bad, I promise.”
“Is it animal, vegetable, or mineral?” Felicity asked.
“No clues,” Robert scolded her. “It’s a surprise.”
Felicity dragged him forward eagerly.
He got shy about offering it to her when they got to his cottage. “If you don’t like it...I thought it would be funny, but I’m not sure…”
Felicity gave a shout of laughter and joy. “Where did you get the fabric?” she asked in delight, resting the cone-shaped hat on her head. It was a red and green holly design, and the perfect complement to her elf outfit.
“It was a pair of holiday boxers I brought with me. There was a sewing kit in the sitting room and I’m pretty handy with a needle.”
